Singapore No.1 ... Again!!!

[Barnsley]

http://www.bbc.com/news/business-32608772

Surely this news is going to get the folks asking "why we importing all this talent ", unless its the students they are importing thats providing the top rankings.

[rajagainstthemachine]

Go India! We aren't even on that list of science and math toppers!

[calugaruvaxile]

Go India! We aren't even on that list of science and math toppers!

but the space achievements were pretty impressive

[earthfriendly]

But a leading UK head teacher, Sir Anthony Seldon, criticised such league tables as "arguably doing more harm than good".

"They are skewing schools and national education systems away from real learning towards repetitive rote learning," said Sir Anthony, head of Wellington College in Berkshire.

This kind of ranking exercise can do a lot of harm. So much of the human experiences simplify can't be quantify. It is in the human nature to love a challenge, to be curious and inquisitive. Giving people a test score, grading and labeling them this way end up commoditizing education. And we end up commoditizing humanity.

[JR8]

Giving people a test score, grading and labeling them this way end up commoditizing education. And we end up commoditizing humanity.

... and then importing FTs when any creative thinking is needed.

[the lynx]

Giving people a test score, grading and labeling them this way end up commoditizing education. And we end up commoditizing humanity.

... and then importing FTs when any creative thinking is needed.

[bgd]

Let's see a life skills ranking. That would be more interesting.

[Barnsley]

It would appear that a lot of the education systems around the world are heading towards exam results as the be all and end all.

If that is the case , where are the critical thinkers going to come from?

[JR8]

It would appear that a lot of the education systems around the world are heading towards exam results as the be all and end all.
If that is the case , where are the critical thinkers going to come from?

My impression is that there have been and are some baseline expectations for employability prospects. What did it used to be back in the 70s? - 5 'O'-levels? And if you got 8 you were doing well, clearly bright. By the 80s, that morphed into 8 O's, and say 2 A's. If you had more you were a swot; studying 3 'A's was the required route for tertiary education.
These days it's a given all youngsters (bar the utter retards) will go to uni. Strange, as in my day it was under 10%. That's 10% who qualified, but also 10% who actively wanted to; it was a conscious but not automatic choice; higher learning vs entering the job market.
As more qualified for academia (tertiary), their entry had to be controlled via additional differentiators. Hence the advent of A* grading, and for those expected to score 85%+ at A-level, the chance of doing an S-level in parallel [Special?].
And so here we are today, all kids leave school with 12 A* O-levels, and 4-5 A* A-levels.

So really it means very little, barring proof of an ability to learn and repeat, same as it always did. This is why I think there has been a move to internships, and extra-curricular activities.

If I was sifting CVs it mattered little if everyone had x this and y that, and summa cum laude distinctions here and there, but if they'd done an internship with a co I respected, and had a good reference from them, and/or maybe say they had been elected Chairman of their 500pax student hiking club (or anything that required management)... that tended to speak louder, and the qual/count far less... they've gone from being learn/repeat box-tickers to 'taking those skills into the market' and demonstrating that they work.

So I wonder, to what extent is the internship/extra-curricular aspect now incorporated into the local 'whole education' horizon....

p.s. 'critical thinking' - I think we've discussed this before, you might conclude that it's contrary to the values (rules?) of SE Asian society.

[JR8]

I think NS is designed as the real-life bitch-slap that's required after getting 14 O-levels, and 5 A-levels here.

----

Does it work.... you be the judge.

[nakatago]

It would appear that a lot of the education systems around the world are heading towards exam results as the be all and end all.

If that is the case , where are the critical thinkers going to come from?

The rebels.

[x9200]

I am only surprised the organizations responsible for such rankings don't see the whole nonsense of what they have created.

[ecureilx]

Street smart, thinking outside the box ... see how easily folks get scammed when words like strongly recommended, govt says so and all reel in the gullible and all ..

The funny part is, a friend, a well property agent earning 5 figure pay monthly, got scammed overseas by a extremely simple con in the Ph..

When he was describing the setup i am like ....no way you could fall for such elementary scams .. but ...

[JR8]

I am only surprised the organizations responsible for such rankings don't see the whole nonsense of what they have created.

Why, they're selling at large profit their worthless 'badged' opinions and tin gongs to eager governments.

[nakatago]

The funny part is, a friend, a well property agent earning 5 figure pay monthly, got scammed overseas by a extremely simple con in the Ph..

Which con is it? There's so many, I can't even start to think which one it could be.